S.Korea explains its position on President Yoon's 'controversial' remarks to Iranian envoy

By Mahmoud Barakat

ANKARA (AA) - South Korea on Thursday called the Iranian ambassador in Seoul to the Foreign Ministry to explain President Yoon Suk Yeol's recent remarks during his visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), local media said.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Lim Soo-suk said during a press conference that the ministry called Saeed Badamchi Shabestari and "explained again Seoul's position," according to Yonhap News Agency.

The ministry also stressed that President Yoon’s comments were "irrelevant" to South Korea's relations with Iran and urged against "unnecessary overinterpretation," according to the news agency.

During his recent visit to the UAE, Yoon made some public remarks, describing Iran as the "enemy" of the UAE.

Iran on Wednesday summoned South Korea’s ambassador over Yoon’s remarks, calling them "interfering and in line with undermining peace and stability in the region."

“During the meeting with Yun Kang-Hyeon on Wednesday, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister on Legal Affairs Reza Najafi pointed to the deep-rooted and friendly relations of the Islamic Republic of Iran with most of the Persian Gulf countries, terming the South Korean president's remarks about Iran and UAE as interfering and in line with undermining peace and stability in the region,” the official Iranian news agency IRNA reported.

Najafi also demanded an explanation for the president's remarks about Iran's "possibility of developing a nuclear weapon," which he said were "incompatible with the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons."

*Additional reporting by Islamuddin Sajid